Sr. Celine Tomasic, Phjc

Sister Celine Tomasic (Mildred) a Poor Handmaid of Jesus Christ died on May 12, 2018 in the Catherine Kasper Home in Donaldson, Indiana. She was born in Gary, Indiana on July 5, 1924 to Steve and Helen (Dolanar) Tomasic who preceded her in death along with her brothers, Joseph and John and her sisters, Rose Frisch, Ann Kachur, Mary Larson and Helen Tomasic. She was the youngest of the seven children. Sister Celine is survived by nieces and nephews.

As a child, Sister Celine felt close to the Poor Handmaid Sisters at St. Mark School in Gary and wanted to find out what their life was all about. So on December 7, 1943 she entered the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ Congregation and professed her first vows on June 25,1946. Sister received her Bachelor of Education degree at DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois and her master’s degree in Education at St. Francis College, Fort Wayne, Indiana. Sister Celine was an elementary teacher in Illinois for 19 years. She served at St. Augustine School, Chicago; St. John, Quincy; St. Boniface, Edwardsville; and St. Henry, Chicago. For the next 41 years she continued as an educator in the Gary, Diocese. Those schools included Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Hammond; St. Francis Xavier, Lake Station; Blessed Sacrament, St. Mark and St. Ann, Gary.

Sister loved teaching and shared her thoughts in a reflection, “I began teaching in 1945. Every year each class was fulfilling in a way. Children have a way of making the difficult job of teaching a joy. By striving to lead children to God—God has come to me and graced my life with blessings.” In 2006 Sister Celine joined the Woodland Carving Club in Portage, Indiana where she mastered her skill of wood carving. She chiseled many statues including a nativity scene which is displayed at Catherine Kasper Home at Christmas. She shared, “I loved that the Lord let me do something I always wanted to do – CARVE and DRAW. Chiseling is hard work. At times, I thought my arms would fall off. But oh, the satisfaction to show the work of his hands through the work of my hands is a wonderful gift, and just think, he blessed me with that gift. Thank you God!”

Sister Celine officially retired to the Catherine Kasper Home in 2011.

Visitation will be held at the Catherine Kasper Home in Donaldson, Indiana on Wednesday, May 16, 2018 from 4:30 – 8:00 p.m. EDT. A Prayer Service will be held that same evening at 7:00 p.m. EDT.

The Mass of Resurrection will be celebrated at Catherine Kasper Home on Thursday, May 17, 2018 at 11:15 a.m. EDT.

Burial will follow in the Mt. Carmel Cemetery, Donaldson, Indiana.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ at www.poorhandmaids.org or PO Box 1, Donaldson, Indiana 46513.